Progressive dies are used to transform flat strips of sheet metal into a formed part. This transformation is performed progressively by a series of stations that cut, punch, form, and bend the material into a desired shape. A progressive die that performs the various forming operations on the material is unique for every part. The various components that make up the die are located in guided and precision cut openings in plates, which are in turn located and guided by pins. The entire die is actuated by a mechanical press that moves the die up and down, and the sheet metal is fed through the die progressing from one station to the next.
Progressive die design is a relatively complex and highly iterative process. When a die company receives a design from a customer, for example, it is common practice to remodel the components using the die company's own system, the original drawings, or a 3D model. The next step involves process planning. This involves unfolding, blank layout, scrap design and strip layout. Then the main die structure must be addressed. This normally includes the die base design, in addition to a great number of inserts, standard parts, and relief design depending on the complexity of the part being manufactured. After this stage is complete the detailed drawings are produced for the progressive die. Each step is a relatively manual one. Consequently, it is time-consuming and expensive. In addition, design modifications to the initial part must be run through the entire process manually, largely due to the lack of associativity among the different systems that are employed. A great amount of design knowledge and experience is required.
Today's progressive die manufacturers face a number of issues that hold back improvements in productivity, quality, and turnaround time. These range from a lack of experienced progressive die designers, the difficulties involved in speeding up and improving quality in the more traditional design methods, and a shortage of any specific, easy-to-use, productive software solutions for progressive die design. In order to maintain their competitive edge and survive, more and more progressive die companies are looking to adopt three-dimensional computer-aided design (“3D CAD”) technology.